"[W]e should not lose sight of the fact that Ďjob killingí taxes and
Ďjob killingí budget cuts both potentially bring about the same result: job
loss and a diminished future for working families."

ĖDenis Hughes, President of AFL-CIO

"Itís a bad idea [to make localities pay half the cost of the Empire Zones
program]. The impact on communities which now are overburdened is going to be
incredible. It might be so significant that empire-zone boards might decide not
to give incentives because they canít afford them."

Ė Brian McMahon, Executive Director of the New York State Economic Development
Council

"These cuts will bankrupt hospitals across the state and diminish hospital
care for all patients, whether they are insured by Medicaid or not. Doctors and
nurses will be laid off and hospitals will close, to the great detriment of the
communities they serve."

Ė Kenneth E. Raske, President of the Greater New York Hospital Association

The governorís budget proposal also
eliminates:

$2 million for the Downtown Development Initiative Grant Program Ė
which helps revitalize downtown and commercial areas

$1.3 million for the Entrepreneurial Assistance Program (EAP) Ė which
provides valuable technical assistance to small business.

The governorís budget cuts funds to
promote tourism:

The I New
York Program and the Local Tourism Matching Grant Program would be combined
and cut by $1.3 million, making it harder to market local products and
attractions.

Under this proposal, allocation of funding is at the discretion of the governor,
and itís conceivable that local Tourism Promotion Agencies may receive no funding
at all.

The governorís budget will have grave consequences for New Yorkís
working families by putting up to 105,000 jobs in jeopardy.

If the governorís recently-unveiled budget proposal is passed as is, it
could eliminate 105,000 jobs in New York State, eviscerate the stateís
most successful job-creation program, and severely impact small retailers.

The governorís proposed cuts to health care and education would not only
limit health care services and lower academic standards, but could increase
unemployment. The governorís $2 billion cut to Medicaid and health care
services could eliminate 48,000 jobs, and cuts to elementary and secondary
schools, as well as colleges and universities, could cost New York 57,000 jobs.

There is no doubt that we have tough decisions to make this year. But taking
jobs away from working families is the wrong decision.

During the years of the Pataki administration between 1995 and 2001, the
nationís employment grew by 15.6 percent, while New York State employment
grew by only 9.4 percent. If New York State employment had grown at the
same rate as the nation over that period, 476,700 additional jobs would
have been created. Now the governor has put forward a proposed state budget
that will put New York even further behind the rest of the country in job growth.

The governorís budget undermines Empire Zones ó an initiative his administration
once called the single most effective program in the country.

The governor proposes eliminating over $3.5 million in funding to local Empire Zone
administrators, and originally proposed forcing local governments to pay half the
cost of the program. His proposals call into question his commitment to the enormously
successful program, and could threaten its long-term viability. This Assembly-initiated
program is designed to cut costs for businesses in economically struggling areas of
the state and help companies create more jobs. Undermining the program is not only a
bad decision ó itís a slap in the face to every community in our state working to
improve its struggling economy.

After promising not to raise taxes, the governor has proposed $6.7 billion in hidden
taxes, fees, and surcharges.

The governorís rhetoric does not match reality. To make matters worse for local economies,
the governor wants to eliminate the sales tax exemption on clothing articles under $110,
which would amount to over $13 billion in exempt retail purchases being subjected to
state and local sales taxes. This job-killing tax hike would force consumers out of state
to purchase clothing and could run many small retailers out of business.

And by slashing school aid $1.4 billion, increasing class sizes, and shutting down pre-K
programs, the governorís proposal not only jeopardizes our childrenís education, his
cuts could also cause schools to lay off teachers, while forcing double digit tax hikes
on property taxpayers.

The governorís cuts are the wrong choice.

The Assembly is committed to making the right choices for all New Yorkers and will fight for
a budget that isnít balanced on the backs of working families.

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